Henderson Island (Pitcairn Islands)

Henderson Island

UNESCO World Heritage Site
Map of Henderson Island
Location	Pacific Ocean
Criteria	Natural: vii, x
Reference	487
Inscription	1988 (12th Session)
Website	https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/487
Coordinates	24°22′30″S 128°19′30″W / 24.37500°S 128.32500°W / -24.37500; -128.32500
Location of Henderson Island in the Pacific Ocean

Henderson Island is an uninhabited island in the south Pacific Ocean. It is part of the Pitcairn Island Group, together with Pitcairn, Oeno, and Ducie Islands. Measuring 9.6 by 5.1 kilometres (6.0 mi × 3.2 mi), it has an area of 37.3 km² (14.4 sq mi) and is located 193 km (104 nmi) northeast of Pitcairn Island, which is the only inhabited island of the group. It has poor soil and little fresh water, and is unsuitable for agriculture. There are three beaches on the northern end and the remaining coast comprises steep (mostly undercut) cliffs up to 15 m (50 ft) in height. In 1902, it was annexed to the Pitcairn Islands colony, which is now a British Overseas Territory.

Henderson is one of the last two raised coral atolls in the world whose ecosystems remain relatively unaffected by human contact, along with Aldabra in the Indian Ocean. In 1988, it was designated a World Heritage Site by the United Nations. Ten of its 51 flowering plants, all four of its land birds and about a third of the identified insects and gastropods are endemic – a remarkable diversity given the island's size.^[1]